J/111s Enjoy Tight Class Racing at RORC Vice Admirals Cup
The Royal Ocean Racing Club’s annual Vice Admiral’s Cup Regatta was sailed on the Solent. The fleet was treated to a wide variety of weather conditions—cloudy to sunny, light to breezy, shifty to streaky, and, of course, current.
Day One: The opening day served up light airs, with big shifts and wind reversals that challenged competitors and race officials alike. A quiet morning quickly gave way to an afternoon that started with fast-paced action on both course areas. The first start was for the J/111s in a very shifty southwesterly of 10-12 knots that created plenty of tactical challenges in a tight race with a short 0.8 mile windward leg. The fleet strongly favored the committee boat end of the line, and the first start was abandoned with 40 seconds to go. In the restart, the fleet was more spaced out, with Cornel Riklin's J/111 JITTERBUG closest to the pin end of the line. Both Simon Bamford's KESTREL and Joerg Sigg's LALLEKONIG appeared well placed mid-line, but the former was OCS. It was an intense race for the J/111s, with two laps completed in only 35 minutes, and the first five boats finishing just 69 seconds apart. Joerg Sigg's Swiss LALLEKONIG took victory, 20 seconds ahead of Tony Mack's McFLY, with Cornel Riklin's JITTERBUG third.
Day Two: The second day of racing delivered short, sharp races that tested sailors over a wide range of conditions. It was a day of intensely close racing in a very shifty north-northwesterly breeze of mostly 10-15 knots, but with a number of lighter spells and a brief squall that saw gusts above 20 knots. Tony Mack’s McFLY asserted near dominance in the J/111 fleet, taking two decisive wins and two second places. The winner of Friday’s race, Joerg Sigg’s LALLEKONIG, took a 30 percent points penalty for an infringement in race 3, and lying one point behind McFLY in the overall standings. Competition further down the fleet was equally strong, with Chris Jones’ JOURNEYMAKER II on 14 points, and both Jan Van Berne’s RED HERRING and Cornel Riklin’s JITTERBUG on 15 points going into the final day.
Day 3: Summer sun returned for Sunday’s racing, with bright sun and rising temperatures, but initially without any wind. The committee boats left the dock when the beginnings of a southerly of 2-3 knots sprang up in the central Solent at 1030 hrs. Half an hour later, it had swung into the southeast and increased to 8 knots, and the AP flags signaling the postponement came down at 1100. At the start of the day, five boats were still in contention for a podium place in the J/111 fleet. A win in both of Sunday's races sealed Tony Mack's class victory on McFLY, 6.5 points ahead of Sigg's LALLEKONIG. The three-way fight for third was resolved in favor of Chris Jones' JOURNEYMAKER II, thanks to his two second places.
For more RORC Vice Admiral’s Cup information, visit http://www.rorc.org/racing/racing-portal.
Fast & Furious Edlu Distance Race
Larchmont Yacht Club in New York kicked off it summer offshore sailing season with their Edlu Race, first sailed in 1956. The event has two courses for different types of sailors. The Spinnaker course is 32.0nm from the Larchmont Breakwater to Gong 11B off Eaton's Neck and back. The Non-Spinnaker course is approximately 20.0nm. The eight-boat PHRF Doublehanded Division was won by Abhijeet Lee’s J/111 VARUNA. For more Larchmont YC Edlu Distance Race information, visit https://www.larchmontyc.org/.
Skeleton Key Takes J/111 Fleet at Annapolis NOOD
The Helly Hansen Annapolis NOOD regatta took place May 3-5. In the eight-boat J/111 fleet, Peter Wagner’s Skeleton Key won four of seven races to earn the Class win with 14 points. Rob Ruhlman’s Spaceman Spiff followed in second place with 20 points, and Jim Connelly’s Slush Fund in third with 27 points. For complete event details, visit https://yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=6036.
Warsash Spring Series Weekend IV Report
The fourth weekend is in the books for the Warsash Sailing Club’s HELLY HANSEN Warsash Spring Series. The fleet was blessed, again, with good enough conditions to get in one more race for the IRC handicap fleets. The forecast for the day was not exciting, E to SE, 4-7 knots. This eventually turned out to ENE to S and the back to ESE, with 3-5 knots for most of the day and reaching nearly 8 knots for the last half of the last race of the day. In IRC 1 Class, it was the first outing for Chris Jones & Louise Makin’s J/111 JOURNEYMAKER II, showing they had not lost their edge by winning their class in convincing fashion. For more HELLY HANSEN Warsash Spring Series information, visit https://warsashspringseries.org.uk/2019/index.htm.
North European Fleet J/111s Race at Taittinger and Cowes Week
Early commitments make J/111s the largest single boat type at both the Taittinger Regatta and in IRC1 at Cowes Week 2019. The Taittinger regatta, 26-27 July 2019, run by the Royal Solent Yacht Club at Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, is a relatively new event for the J/111s, but popularity is growing steadily. The weekend begins with the Taittinger champagne party at the RSYC on the Friday evening, offers two ‘Solent’ round-the-cans races on Saturday, the Towers party with live music and fireworks on the Saturday evening and another race and prize-giving on the Sunday. Entry includes a berth at Yarmouth marina. At Cowes Week 2019, the J/111 results will be extracted from IRC1 for a class result.
North European Fleet J/111 2019 Series Sponsored by Sweeney
In a new initiative to build on the success of the J/111 2018 Worlds in Breskens, Netherlands, the North European J/111 Fleet has organised a Series competition for 2019. J/111 boats and crews will be competing for the new Paul Heys trophy, awarded to the overall points winner over the six scheduled regattas, which include:
Vice Admirals Cup - 10, 11, 12 May
Royal Southern Regatta - 18, 19 May
Royal Southern Regatta - 15, 16 June
Royal Southern Regatta - 13, 14 July
J Cup - 18, 19, 20 July
Royal Southern Regatta - 14, 15 September
There will also be a regatta in Breskens, Netherlands. Races are predominantly windward/leeward, with some round-the-cans. Ten boats from the UK, Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland are signed up for the Series, so exciting, close, international Class racing is guaranteed. All J/111s are welcome to join the Series and race in any or all of the regattas. For more information, contact the NE Fleet Captain Simon Bamford at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The Series has been sponsored by Sweeney (NED8337). Owner Hans Zwijnenburg’s generous contribution in his words is to ‘Promote one design racing in our J/111 Class.’
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